Girl Meets Triangle
Girl Meets Triangle is the fifth episode in season 3 of Girl Meets World and the 56th episode overall. It aired on June 24, 2016 to 2.1 million viewers. Overview Maya spirals into an identity crisis when her art teacher points out how much her relationship with Riley has influenced her work. Plot On their way to class, Maya and Riley are perplexed by all the emotional turmoil they suddenly see in the hallway. Seeking sanctuary in the girls' restroom (where the chaos is even worse), they find out through a girl named Sage that it's "Break-Up Monday" at AAHS, during which guys break up with their Friday night party dates on Monday morning, the reason being so that everyone can have a full week of drama until the next party. But then Riley and Maya notice that the break-ups aren't limited to just boy/girl relationships; friendships very similar to their own are being harshly broken. Riley and Maya both assert that they will never let that happen to them, but when they reveal to Sage that they both like the same boy (Lucas, of course), Sage declares that their friendship is over, and that they have to make a decision. Back in the hallway, the girls meet up with Lucas, Farkle and Zay who have been hearing the male side of all the drama. Lucas echoes Sage's advice that they need to make a decision, and Zay is determined to not let their circle of friends be broken. When Lucas again asserts that someone might get hurt, Farkle reminds them of what he's been saying all along: that if they're not honest with one another, everyone will get hurt. When the school bell rings, the boys go to their respective classes, and Riley and Maya go to Mr. Jackson's art class. In art class, Riley and Maya have both deviated from their assignment to paint a photo-realistic representation of the benches in Central Park. Riley yet again paints a purple cat, much to Jackson's chagrin, but Maya paints a surrealistic picture which Jackson refers to as just purple splotches, leaving him confused as to what it's supposed to mean. Maya tries to explain that she's just painting what she feels, but when Jackson asks her what she's trying to say in her painting, she admits she doesn't know. Jackson then asks Maya why she picked the bench she did (in the photo taped to her easel) and what it was about that bench that influenced her; he then asks her what her personal influences are, saying that these can sometimes turn a person into a copycat, but again Maya has no answer, saying that maybe she doesn't know who she is. Jackson challenges Maya to find herself in order to succeed in his class; he postpones giving her work a grade and calls the painting "incomplete" because as far as he's concerned, that's what the painting says about Maya. Although Maya denies it, Jackson's words trigger an identity crisis within her; Maya has become more sullen and taciturn, which Riley knows is not in her character. After school in the bay window Riley notices Maya's change saying that Mr. Jackson attacked her art, and the real Maya would have never taken it. Maya, on the other hand, thinks that there's nothing wrong, but every time Riley tries to talk to her about her artwork she keeps changing the subject to Lucas. At Topanga's, Lucas is still at an impasse about who to choose, so Zay comes up with an idea: he brings out a small balance scale and two bags of jelly beans (yellow to represent Maya, purple to represent Riley) and has Lucas weigh each girl against the other on different aspects, the first being "personality"; Zay asks him which girl makes him laugh, and Lucas replies that Riley's goofiness makes him laugh easily, but then admits that Maya's name-calling makes him laugh as well, each of which score a jelly bean on either side of the scale. Farkle then asks Lucas who he would rather have a deep conversation with; he recalls his conversation with Riley in the library, but then remembers his fireside talk with Maya in Texas. With the jelly bean scale still even, Farkle asks Lucas which girl makes him go "bluoylalaloo!"; Zay thinks it's Riley, but Lucas is convinced that the moment when he and Riley first met was not a coincidence, because he also remembers that Riley's falling into his lap on the subway was orchestrated by Maya. Farkle and Zay urge Lucas to choose, for the good of all of them. Back at home, Riley asks Cory and Topanga to fix Maya, and Topanga calls Katy to come and be a part of the discussion, but Katy, citing the fact that Maya spends most of her time with the Matthews' family, thinks Cory and Topanga can do a better job of fixing Maya. Topanga becomes convinced that Maya is not herself, but when Maya, believing that "no teenager knows who they are", continues to insist there's nothing wrong, Riley reminds her that even Mr. Jackson knows that Maya hasn't been herself. In the bay window, Riley admits that as long as she could remember she always wanted to be like Maya, explaining that Maya has always been stronger than her and that she just proved it by becoming Riley. Maya argues that just because she's wearing her hair and clothing similar to Riley it doesn't mean she's her, and then challenges Riley to name one thing that they share in common that has to do with what's on the inside, but Maya comes up with the answer herself: Lucas. Riley then points out that Maya hasn't been getting into any trouble for some time; when Maya asks what's wrong with the way she is now, Riley answers that there's already one Riley in the world, and that the world needs one Maya as well, but Maya thinks it's going to take more than just clothes, hair and liking the same boy to make her see that she's not herself. The next day in art class, Mr. Jackson shows the students a picture of Monet's "Water Lilies" impressionist masterpiece; he teaches that if you stand too close to a painting all you see are just splotches of paint, but sometimes a painting can be recognized for what it is by simply changing one's perspective, which can also apply to people as well. Jackson apologizes to Maya for what he said to her the previous day, and then entreats her to take another look at her own work from a different perspective: holding her painting, he takes a few steps back from Maya so she can get another look, and for the first time, Maya sees that she actually painted a purple cat! That afternoon at the Matthews' house, Maya finally admits that she has become like Riley and quietly begs the real Riley to help her find her old self again. As the two best friends head out the door, Cory and Topanga ask where they're going, but Riley only gives a vague answer and the two leave; Cory takes a closer look at a photo on a nearby shelf of Riley and Maya sitting on a park bench, the same one Maya took a picture of for her art assignment. Topanga then asks Cory and Katy where they think Riley and Maya are going; Katy believes that they're going to find Maya. Just moments after the girls leave, Lucas, having climbed through the bay window, arrives in the kitchen and announces that he's finally made his choice between Riley and Maya. When he is informed the girls aren't there Lucas starts to leave, but Katy and Topanga demand that he come back and tell them his decision; Lucas sits down with them, but the episode ends before he reveals his answer... (for the continuation of this story, see Girl Meets Upstate) Cast Main cast *Rowan Blanchard as Riley Matthews *Ben Savage as Cory Matthews *Sabrina Carpenter as Maya Hart *Peyton Meyer as Lucas Friar *Corey Fogelmanis as Farkle Minkus *Danielle Fishel as Topanga Matthews Recurring cast *Amir Mitchell-Townes as Zay Babineaux *Cheryl Texiera as Katy Hart 'Guest cast' *Aaron Lazar as Mr. Jackson *Diamond White as Sage *Gideon Adlon as Felicity *Bailey Billet as Carly *Yasmine Vega as Samantha *Ilana Mayes as Ilana *Antione L. Grant as Antione 'Absent cast' *August Maturo as Auggie Matthews International Premieres * August 30, 2016 (Australia) * December 1, 2016 (Latin America, Brazil) Quotes Trivia *This episode aired at a special time (7:30 pm EST) to make room for the 100th DCOM Adventures In Babysitting, which starred Sabrina Carpenter and Sofia Carson. * Auggie is absent for the first time in season 3. *Lucas finally makes a decision about Riley and Maya, albeit off-screen. *Zay using a scale and jellybeans to help Lucas choose between Riley and Maya is a callback to the BMW episode, "Torn Between Two Lovers (Feeling Like a Fool)", where Shawn does the same thing to Cory to help him choose between Lauren and Topanga. *First appearance of AAHS' art teacher, Mr. Jackson. *This is first appearance of Katy Hart in season 3. *Lucas references Girl Meets Boy and Girl Meets Texas (Part 2). 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